The teen smoking rate in Florida is at a record low, according to a new national report. As the Orlando Sentinel reports, the national rate is 15.8 percent; Florida’s is much lower at 8.6 percent. The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids says Florida’s anti-tobacco campaign is so effective they point to as a “model.”
At the same time, the Centers for Disease Control says the state is using less than 5 percent of the $1.6 billion it got last year from 1998’s tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes on prevention programs. The CDC recommends states spend about 13 percent of those funds on programs to stop people from using tobacco products. It’s unclear where the rest of those funds are going in Florida.
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